Culturally Relevant Pedagogy in Public Education

Current and projected demographics, as well as data reflecting high school completion rates across ethnic groups in the U.S. demand a reexamination of pedagogical approaches in public schools. Despite substantial research demonstrating the success that Culturally Relevant Pedagogy (CRP) has with students of color, it remains a widely underutilized approach. This paper investigates factors inhibiting the use of CRP with Latino students. The researcher interviewed two English teachers at an East Salinas high school with a 98% Latino student body. Teachers were asked how they feel about CRP, what are factors inhibiting its implementation and what could be done to increase its use. Findings indicate there are various factors associated with insufficient use of CRP, including misunderstandings of its theoretical and practical implications. This suggests that much work needs to be done with regard to preparing culturally competent and critical educators that will work in predominantly Latino schools. Based on these findings, the researcher created an online resource space dedicated to CRP. Despite various challenges, educators continue being responsible for manipulating pedagogical forms in ways that most adequately serve Latino youth